Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-12-29
ADJUSTMENTS.
Or rALMAGE's SUNDAY SERMON,
Recreation That Is Proper and Sports
That are Not:

TEXTS They th0t tse thts tcortd, as NOT
abusing I'll Corinthians vii, 3 "And u
came to pass trheA their hearts tgere merry, |
that they said: Call for Samson, that he
may make US sport. AAd they called for |
Samson out Of the prison house; and he |
made them sport. Judges xvi, ~.
We are entering the gayest season Of the |
year. The winter opens before us the gates |
of thousand amusements, some OF them |
good and some bad. One OF my texts will |
show you that amusements may be destructr
i've, my other text will show that amuse-
ments may be under the Divine blessing and
direction.
There were three thousand people assem-
bled in the temple Of Dagon. They had come
to make sport Of eyeless Samson. They were
all ready for the entertainment. They began
70 clap and pound, impatient for the amuse-
ment to begin, and they cried: Fetch him
out! Fetch him outln Yonder see the blind
giant coming, led by the hand Of child into
the very midst OF the temple. AT his frss APP
pearance there goes up shout Of laughter
and derision. The blind old giant pretends
he is tired and wants to rest himself against
the pillars of the house; so he says to the lad
who leads him: "Show me where the main
pillars are" The lad does so. Then the strong
man puts his right hand on one pillar and
his left hand ON another pillar, and, with
the mightiest push that mortal ever made,
house comes down in thunderous crash,
grinding the audience like grapes in wine
press "And 20 it came to pass, when their
hearts were merry, that they said: Call for
Samson, that ne may make US sport. And
they called for Samson out Of the prison
house; and he made them sport"
In other words, there are amusements that
are destructive, and bring down disaster and
death upon the heads of those who practice
them. While they laugh and cheer. they die.
The three thousand who perished that day In
GAIA are as nothing compared with the tens
of thousands who have been destroyed by
sinful amusements.
there is lawful use Of the world, as well as
an unlawful abuse Of it; and the difference
between the man Christian and the man un-
Christian is that in the former case the man
masters the world, while in the latter case the
world masters him. For whom did God
make this grand and beautiful worlda For
whom this wonderful expenditure OF color,
this gracefulness of line, this mosaic of the
ground, this fresco of the sky, this glowing
fruitage of orchard and vineyard, this full
orchestra of the tempest, in which the tree
branches flute and the winds trumpet and the
the thunders drum and all the splendors of
earth and sky come clashing their cymbalsl
For whom did God spring the arched bridge
Of colors resting upon buttresses Of broken
6VQIu ClOuuf pOI WuOu1 no babhOh uuo
upholstery Of fire around the window of the
setting sum- For all men, but more especially
for his own dear children.
II you build large mansion and spread
great feast after it to celebrate the compile
tion OF the structure, do you allow strangers
to come in and occupy the place, while you
thrust your own children in the kitchen or
the barn or the fieldsg Oh, no. You say: II
am very glad to see strangers in my man
sion, but my own sons and daughters shall
have the first right there Now, God has
built this grand mansion of world, and he
has spread glorious feast in 1t; and while
those who are strangers to his grace may
come in, ! think that God specially intends to
give the advantage to his own children,
the Lord Almighty, those who through grace
can look up and say: .Abba, Father You
cannot make me believe that God gives
more advantages to the world than he
gives to the church bought by his own
blood. If, therefore, people of the
world have looked with dolorous sympathy
upon those who make profession Of religion,
and have said: Those new converts are go
ing down into privation and into hardship.
Why did nct they tafTy little longer in
the world, and have some OF its enjoy
ments and amusements and recreations!" I
say to such men of the world: "You are
greatly mistaken, y and before get through
will show that those people who stay out Of
the kingdom Of God have the hardships AND
selfdenials, while those who come in have
the Joys and the satisfactions.
This morning, in the name of the King O.
Heaven and earth, Iserve writ of eject
ment upOn all the sinful and polluted VIII,
have sduatted on the domain Of earthl,
pleasure as though it belonged to them, whii
claim, in behalf of the good and the pur
and the true, the eternal inheritance whicl
God has given them.
Hitherto, Christian philanthropists, .cleri
cal and lay, have busted themselves chiefly i
denouncing sinful recreations; but / feel W
have no right to stand before men and womel
in whose hearts there is a desire for recrea
tion amounting to positive necessity, de
nouncing this and that and the other thing
when we do not promise to give them som
thing better God helping me this morning
and with reference to my last account Isha
enter upon sphere not usual in sermonii
ing, but subject which think ought to
presented at this time. propose now to Ia
before you some Of the recTeations which al
not only Innocent, but positively helpful an
advantageous. !.
In the first place, commend, among il
door recreations, music, vocal and instri
mental. Among the first things created we
the bird, so that the earth might have mus
at the start. This world, which began vii
so sweet a serenade, is finally to be demo
ished amidst the ringing blast Of the arc
at the start, there shall be music at the clos
While this heavenly art has often be-
dragged into the uses ofsuperstition and d
sipaEion. we all know it may be the means
high moral culture. Oh, it is grand tnil
to have our children brought up amidst &
sound of cultured voices and amidst t
melody Of musical instruments There is
at Nrt
household Let all those families who ha
the means to afford it, have flute or harp.
piano or organ. As soon as the hand is lar
enough to compass the keys, teach it how
pick out the melody. Let all our young m
try this heavenly art upon their natur
Those who have gone into it fully have fou
In IL iliimitable recreation and amusemeI
Dark days, stormy nights, seasons of sic
ness, business disasters, will do little iowa
depressing the soul which can gallop of oy
musical keys or soar in jubilant lay. It "
cure pain. It will rest fatigue. It will qu
passion It will revive health. 1t will
claim dissipation II will strengthen the i
mortal soul. In the battle of Waterloo, W
lington saw that the Highlanders were "a
therep' He was told that the band Of mu
had ceased playing, and he called up
pipers and ordered them to strike up an
spiriting air; and no sooner did they str
the air than the Highlanders were rail-
and helped to win the day. oh, ye who ha
been routed in the conflicts of life, try by
force of music to rally your scattered b
talions.
I am glad to know that in our great citi
there is hardly night in which there are n
concerts where, with the best musical instr
uents and the sweetest voices, people ms
find entertainment. Patronize such ente
taiments when they are afforded you Bt